Shadows of Oblivion/Chapter 8
As Link and Toruda made their way through Hyrule Field, deep within the Nadarian encampment Zenith and Carock were both in the middle of a game of chess. As both moved their pieces back and forth, they discussed the images that Carock had summoned beforehand. As Zenith had his queen take Carock’s knight, he said, “So you’re telling me that if I do not remove this ‘Link’, I am destined to fail and this campaign will be defeated? I find that rather hard to believe, seeing that even if he is the ‘legendary hero’ of this land, he is but one man, and he has yet to fight such a disciplined force such as mine.” Smirking from within his hood, Carock moved his bishop so that it took Zenith’s queen before saying “Pride always goeth before the fall. Many have underestimated him and his ancestors, from the mighty General Onox to the insane king Zant. He should not be taken so lightly. He is skilled and has the uncanny ability to unite the races of this land.” Zenith sighed as he heard this and then moved his pawn, taking out Carock’s other knight that had once been guarded by his bishop. As he moved the piece aside, he said, “Surely you are belittling my talents. I already have a plan in motion to deal with the other races. My generals are already on route to take care of them as we speak. As for Link, I have my own plans for him. When I strike at the heart of the kingdom itself, there will be nothing he can do to stop it.” Carock was immediately intrigued by what plans Zenith could possible have, and as he moved his queen towards his king, he asked “But surely this will spread your forces too thin, and even if they weren’t, how would you pass through the Lost Woods, ascend to the Oocca and their floating city, or break the will of the Gorons? These realms and their races are not simple pushovers, and they will not take your actions lightly. Oh and I nearly forgot to mention this… check.” Chuckling to himself for a moment, Zenith then merely moved his rook into the queen, taking it out. He then said, “Those are simple matters to deal with, for they will either join us or die. I have prepared plans for them should they attempt to resist. I shall see that putrid forest be burned to ashes, and what remains shall fuel my engines of war. I shall then use these very weapons to grind those primitive Gorons into little more than rubble. The Gerudo have already been greatly weakened by their wars with… or should I say massacre by, the Hylians. The Zoras will be an easy victory, as they survive only through their element of water, and should it be poisoned, they will die by the masses.” Carock began to ponder Zenith’s plan when it occurred to him that he had missed something. As he moved his bishop so that it lay directly in front of his own king, he said, “Interesting… very interesting. But what do you plan to do with the Oocca? They lay outside the grasp of mortal man, in a city high up in the heavens. Their city has technology only dreamed of, how will you hope to even conquer it?” Laughing out loud at this comment, Zenith then said, “Their technology may be grand, but they have stagnated as a species. As for reaching them… lets just say I have some technology of my own at my disposal… the heavens can now be reached by the advances of human technology. With them out of the way, and a new defensive structure under our control, we will swiftly move onto the castle, overtake its guards, and in one fell swoop overtake the entire kingdom!” With this utterance, he moved his bishop so that it took out Carock’s rook, and in a small voice he said “Checkmate.” The game was at an end, and as Zenith rose up from the table, he motioned to Carock to follow him. As both exited the tent, Zenith went on to say “I would like you to deliver my commands to the royal family. I foresee that I can no longer prevent them from knowing of this invasion any longer, so it is time then that they learn of my demands.” “I would gladly do this for you, lord Zenith, but how do you propose I even attempt to make my return once I deliver it… I doubt they will take so kindly to your demands.” “Be creative, and I doubt you’re truly worried about such a trivial matter. All you need to worry about is making the bridge. I’ll take care of everything after that…” After saying this, Zenith then stared out into the distance, his gaze intent on the far away castle. ------------------------------- Link made his way to the top of a small hill, and as his reached its peak, he could clearly saw the castle of Hyrule a short distance. As he marveled at the breathtaking site, Toruda appeared behind him, saying, “Quite a sight isn’t it, the kingdom of Hyrule. To think its survived countless wars, plagues, and invasions, yet even after all of that it still acts as a beacon of hope for those who know of it.” As a smug look overcame his face, he soon noticed a caravan a short distance away, one that was apparently making its way to the castle. Pointing it out, he said, “Well there’s our ticket in, lets see if they’ll let us join them.” ------------------------------- As both travelers vanished into the mist of the caravan, the two Goriyas from before watched from the top of the hill where they had stood mere moments before. As they watched Link and Toruda gain entry with the group, the smaller of the two said, “This puts a hinder into our task. We will need disguises if we are to continue on unnoticed.” Scouting for a few moments, his companion then said, “I think I see our disguises, brother.” as he motioned towards two of the travelers in the caravan lagging far behind the others, both of who were wearing heavy robes. Both grinned, and then slowly drew their boomerangs from their hilts. Raising them over their heads, the sun glittered off their sharpened steel edges as they prepared to take action. ------------------------------ As Link and Toruda traveled within the caravan, they had started up a conversation with one of its members, a middle-aged man who was leading a group of goats towards the castle. “So your from Hedora? Why, I haven’t seen that place in years. If I’m correct, it’s not that far from my own home, Orden. What takes you all the way out here anyways?” the man said, as he tugged on rope to cause a reluctant goat to follow him. Toruda quickly replied, saying “Why were here to war-“ but was suddenly cut off by Link, who slapped him on the back. As Toruda quickly grabbed for his aching back, Link said, “Were going to purchase supplies we couldn’t get back at Hedora. Well I can see that you need to get back to work, but thanks again for letting us travel with you.” Waving the two off, the man said “You all don’t be a stranger now, perhaps you can travel with us back to Orden after we sell our overstock.” As Link and Toruda walked out of hearing distance, Toruda grabbed Link by his shoulder and said, “What was that all about now?” Link turned to him and said “We shouldn’t go around telling everyone what were doing… we don’t now who could be listening to us. For now we tell as few people as possible. Well we should try to arrange a meeting with the king as soon as possible." Toruda sighed and then said "I guess you've got a point... and at least we'll be done after we tell them. I mean what could possibly go wrong?" As both made their way into the city surrounding the castle, two cloaked figures broke off from the main caravan and began to tail them, a pair of glowing red eyes menacingly following their every movement.